Black box orientation apparatus

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method to install and index an eccentric noise suppressor. Once a noise suppressor is threadedly secured about the bore of a firearm a retention collar may be released by un-securing a retention cap. Releasing the tension which is placed on the retention collar affords the user an option of orienting the noise suppressor to any position which may be achieved by rotating the noise suppressor about the longitudinal axis of the barrel. This allows the user to place an eccentric noise suppressor in a position which does not obscure the sites of a handgun.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

This invention generally relates to noise suppressors, specifically to systems for orienting threadedly secured, eccentric noise suppressors onto a handgun barrel.

2. Prior Art

Various systems are known in the firearms art for attaching a noise suppressor to a hand gun, and specifically for removably attaching a noise suppressor to a barrel which is threaded on the muzzle end of a hand gun barrel. There nevertheless exists a need for improving such systems.

The majority of handgun noise suppressors found in the prior art have a bore which is concentric to the out side diameter of the noise suppressor housing. Traditional cylinder shaped noise suppressors obscure the sites located on the host weapon. Military, police and civilian consumers are interested in noise suppressor designs which do not obscure the sites of the host hand gun. Threadedly securing a noise suppressor which is of an eccentric variety creates one very acute problem. The length, pitch and timing of the threads commonly machined onto handgun barrels vary between production runs; there is no easy way to orient an eccentric noise suppressor on a variety of firearm without custom fitting the noise suppressor to each handgun. Custom fitting a noise suppressor is expensive and not practical for military, police or civilian users who may need to use the noise suppressor on a variety of different handguns. The apparatus and method which I am providing allows the users of a noise suppressor equipped with my apparatus to properly index the noise suppressor to the handgun being used at the time.

3. Objects and Advantages

Accordingly several objects and advantages of the present invention are

-   -   (a) to provide an apparatus and method which will afford the end         user an option of properly orienting an eccentric noise         suppressor so that it is not excessively obscuring the sites of         a hand gun     -   (b) to provide an orientation apparatus and method which will         work with barrels using a variety of thread pitches as a way of         removably securing a noise suppressor     -   (c) to provide an apparatus which allows the silencer to be         rotated and secured on a 360 degree axis allowing nearly         unlimited options for noise suppressor orientation.     -   (d) to provide a system for orienting a noise suppressor which         is not limited to a single position of orientation.

Still further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and drawings.

SUMMARY

The present invention utilizes an insert which provides a female thread for removably securing a noise suppressor. The aforementioned insert has two machined flats which interface with two flats on a collar that circumferentially covers the threaded insert. The collar is tapered so that when it is pressed into a housing the collar and thereby the threaded insert are rotationally restrained. A cap which may be threadedly secured is used to provide downward pressure against the collar thereby pressing it into the housing. The housing cap may be unsecured and pulled in a path which is longitudinal to the noise suppressor which will result in the collar becoming unsecured. Once this is accomplished the housing and thereby the noise suppressor may be rotated into a desired position. Once the noise suppressor is properly oriented the housing cap is removably secured to prevent the insert and thereby the noise suppressor from rotating further.

DRAWINGS

The novel features believed to be characteristic of the invention, together with further advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated by way of example. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention.

FIG. 1 shows an exploded diagram of the Black Box orientation apparatus indicating how the parts orient to each other during assembly;

FIG. 2 shows a horizontal side view of the piston;

FIG. 3 shows an external front view of the piston shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 shows an internal, side view of the preferred embodiment piston shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 shows a top view of the tapered collar;

FIG. 6 shows a side, internal view of the tapered collar shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 shows a bottom view of the tapered collar shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 shows a cutaway view of the fully assembled Black Box orientation apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Starting with FIG. 1, there is an illustration of an exploded view of the proposed apparatus. The cylindrical housing 13, piston 7, tapered collar 3, spring 15 and the retention cap 1 are the key elements of my proposed invention. Also shown is the proper sequence that each item which is encompassed within the proposed apparatus is to be placed within the cylindrical housing 13.

Shown in FIG. 2, 3, 4, are a variety of views of the preferred embodiment piston 7. Illustrated is the piston indexing flats 8 and the orientation notches 9. The top view of FIG. 3 shows the piston opening 16 where a bullet would exit the piston and pass through the cylindrical housing 13 and the noise suppressor 17. FIG. 4. illustrates the location of mounting threads 6 within the piston 7.

The tapered collar 3 is illustrated in FIG. 5, 6, 7. The indexing flats 4 which guide the piston 7 and match up to the piston indexing flats 8 are shown. When tapered collar 3 is placed within the cylindrical housing opening 10 and secured with the retention cap 1 it is rotationally restrained.

Shown in FIG. 8 is the proposed apparatus fully assembled. To assemble the apparatus the cylindrical housing 13 must be secured within the noise suppressor 17 shown in FIG. 1. Proper placement of the cylindrical housing 13 is achieved by machining a mount shoulder 12 on the cylindrical housing 13. The mount shoulder 12 will provide proper seating for the cylindrical housing 13. The cylindrical housing 13 may be threadedly secured within the noise suppressor or welded. Piston 7 is inserted into the cylindrical housing 13. The spring 15 is a coil spring designed to slide around the piston 7 and fit within the confines of the cylindrical housing 13. A tapered collar placed onto the piston with indexing flats 4 interfacing with the piston indexing flats 8. The tapered collar is then slid down the piston. The retention cap 1 is threadedly secured to the cylindrical housing 13 by means of the retention cap threads 2 and the housing threads 13. With the retention cap 1 threadedly secured it provides pressure against the tapered collar 3 thereby preventing the piston 6 from rotating within the cylindrical housing 13.

Thus, there has been described a preferred embodiment of an apparatus to removably secure and orient a noise suppressor onto the barrel of a handgun. The describe apparatus affords the user virtually unlimited options for noise suppressor orientation. Other embodiments of the present invention, and variations of the embodiment described herein, may be developed without departing from the essential characteristics thereof. Accordingly, the invention should be limited only by the scope of the claims listed below.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATION, AND SCOPE

Accordingly the reader will see that, according to the invention, I have provided a system for orienting the noise suppressor body or baffle stack, based on design, to the host weapon. I have afforded the user of my proposed apparatus the ability to orient a noise suppressor to a host firearm without timing the threads of the barrel and noise suppressor. My proposed device does not limit the positions which the noise suppressor may be mounted. My device when used in conjunction with an eccentric noise suppressor allows the user to adjust the silencer in such a way as to not unnecessarily obstruct the sites of the host firearm.

While my above drawings and description contain many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the invention, but rather as an exemplification of one preferred embodiment thereof. For example, if the noise suppressor body was of a traditional cylinder design the orientation of the internal baffles, well known in the prior art, could be changed to affect the point of impact of all projectiles leaving the host firearm.

Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined not by the embodiments illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.” 

1. An orientation apparatus for a noise suppressor: a: a cylindrical housing which is designed to receive a threaded insert, and b: a threaded insert which has indexing surfaces about its circumference, and c: a tapered circular collar which is design to interface with said cylindrical housing, and d: a retention cap which is secured about and over said cylindrical housing with an opening which allows said threaded insert to pass through, whereby said orientation apparatus for a noise suppressor affords the user unhindered options for the orientation of an affixed noise suppressor through the novel orientation apparatus above, said cylindrical housing contains the thread insert which is made stationary when said tapered circular collar is tightened down thereby engaging the indexing surface located about the external surface of said threaded insert, said retention cap provides pressure to secure the tapered collar against the inside surface of said cylindrical housing, said retention cap further facilitates containing all of the above items into a single system.
 2. The orientation apparatus of claim 1, wherein said cylindrical housing has two openings which run transverse to the body of the cylindrical housing, one opening is designed to receive said thread insert, a second opening which is located on the opposite side of cylindrical housing is designed for a discharged projectile to pass through.
 3. The orientation apparatus of claim 1, wherein said threaded insert has internal threads which run transverse to the bore of a firearm with a longitudinal opening designed for a discharged projectile to pass thorough.
 4. The orientation apparatus of claim 1, wherein said tapered collar has an opening which said threaded insert may pass through, also present are two flat indexing surface which interface about the threaded insert.
 5. The orientation apparatus of claim 1, wherein said retention cap is threadedly secured about the cylindrical housing.
 6. The cylindrical housing of claim 2, wherein said cylindrical housing has an external male thread located opposite of where said retention cap is threadedly secured.
 7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said cylindrical housing has a single internal notch which is located internally about the interior of the cylindrical body.
 8. The threaded insert of claim 3, wherein said threaded insert has notches located about the external body, the notches are located near the opening in the insert which is opposed to the internal threads.
 9. A method for joining the components of the orientation apparatus, comprising the steps of: a: providing a cylindrical housing which provides a external thread mount for retention cap, and b: providing a threaded insert into said cylindrical housing, and c: providing a tapered collar which is tapered to interface with the cylindrical housing and controls the orientation of the threaded insert, and d: providing a retention cap which may be removably secured about the cylindrical housing which both contains the apparatus as a system and provide pressure to the tapered collar thereby retaining its position within the cylindrical housing. e: Once the threaded insert is removably secure about the host firearms bore said retention cap may be loosed, forward pressure applied to the threaded insert thereby releasing the tapered collar from its retained position thus allowing the cylindrical housing to rotate 360 degrees about the tapered collar and threaded insert, once the desired orientation is achieved the retention cap is removable secured thus securing the taped collar in the cylindrical housing preventing further rotation. 